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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · club · fork · pitch · coach · rush · vault · race

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. club — for dancing
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. race — humankind
  6. pitch — completely
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. vault — a safe
  12. race — a contest
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. season — of the year
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — a group
  18. season — in sport
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. race — the arms race
  24. fork — in a road

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com